Every year, the National Police College (NPC) holds a symposium on peace, security and justice as part of its Police Senior Command and Staff Course (PSCSC).

The PSCSC, which brings together senior Police students from across Africa, offers a Masters of Arts in Peace Studies and Conflict Transformation in collaboration with the University of Rwanda’s Centre for Conflict Management.

The one year course also offers a Level 7 certificate in strategic leadership and management, offered in partnership with by the UK-based Chattered Management Institute; Strategic Command offered in partnership with the UK-based College of Policing (formally known as Bramshill International Academy) and a Certificate of Senior Command and Staff Course.

This Thursday, the symposium for the sixth intake of the PSCSC will be held at the Rwanda National Police (RNP) General Headquarters in Kacyiru under the theme: "Mainstreaming Human Security in the New Security Landscape: A Holistic Approach to Sustainable Peace and Development.”

According to Commissioner of Police (CP) Felix Namuhoranye, the commandant of NPC, the theme is designed to "deepen the students’ grasp of the nexus between human security and sustainable peace and development.”

The symposium for the fifth intake was held last year under the theme: "Security to Enhance Good Governance: A Key Pillar for Sustainable Development” while the 2016 annual exercise was held under the theme: "Confronting the Emerging Security Challenges: Rethinking Strategy.”

"This year’s symposium, like others held before, will serve as a platform for course participants to broaden their understanding from experts, policymakers, academicians and key actors in the area of security, justice and governance on human security as a key factor in the new policing landscape and how it impacts sustainable peace and development,” Namuhoranye said.

Key speakers and panelists include the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Johnston Busingye, Minister of Defense, Gen. James Kabarebe, State Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Community, Olivier Nduhungirehe and Kenya’s renowned pan-Africanist Prof. Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba.

Other speakers include the Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) Prof. Anastase Shyaka and Dr. Ochieng Kamudhayi, a researcher from University of Kenya.

"The 2018 symposium will focus on two main aspects; the relationship between traditional security and human security, and how to keep pace with the new security dimensions in terms of designing adaptive approaches to human security,” CP Namuhoranye said.

"The complexity of existing threats to peace, security and justice demand that law enforcement agencies look for systemic responses,” CP Namuhoranye added before elaborating further, "At the symposium students will interact with scholars, academicians, policymakers and other eminent officials with expertise in various fields whose work has influenced  norms in the area of security.”

The course participants have undertaken theoretical and practical elements of learning through internal and external study tours and engaging with frontiers and brightest minds in the area of peace, security and justice.

Moreover, they have had the opportunity to enrich their skills in relation to strategic command and professional policing, executive leadership and strategic management, and have acquired core skills of conflict prevention, resolution, and reconciliation, according to the Commandant of the Police College.

The sixth Police Senior Command and Staff Course attracted 28 senior officers from eight African countries, namely; Ethiopia, Kenya, Namibia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda the host.

After completing classroom work, studies undertake a study tour that is aimed at exposing them to practical aspects of strategic policing; leadership and management; peace and security; conflict prevention and management; socio-economic development; policy-making, justice and good governance.

Past academic tours were taken in Ethiopia, Kenya, Namibia and Tanzania. This year, the study tour saw students visit Sudan where they observed the workings of different law enforcement institutions, including the Khartoum State Police, the Police Training Department, and the Regional Forensic Laboratories in Khartoum.

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